Changing of the guard

Terrance Zeniuk is the new head of security services at MRU. Photo: Rachael Frey

There’s a new face on campus this semester.

OK, there are many new faces on campus this semester, but only one of them is the new manager of security services.

Terrance Zeniuk took over the job after the former manager, Bill Spring, departed last November. He said he envisioned himself returning to school after retirement, but not quite like this.

“I always enjoyed school,” Zeniuk said. “I told my wife that when I retired from the RCMP I wanted to go back to school, and I just never had any idea that it would be as an employee instead of a student.”

Zeniuk is bringing a wide variety of experience to his new role. He worked for the RCMP for 26 years, during which time he did jobs ranging from patrol officer to white collar crime to protecting dignitaries such as the Dalai Lama and Queen Elizabeth.

Oh, and don’t expect to outwit him in any negotiations either.

“Probably one of my favourite things I did was I was a crisis or hostage negotiator,” Zeniuk said. “I did that for 14 years, and I had the opportunity to go out on more than 100 calls, which gave me a really good understanding of how to deal with people in stressful situations.”

Zeniuk said there are some areas of the security services at MRU that he would like to “further enhance,” such as the relationship between security officers and students.

He said that, though security is occasionally called on to do enforcement, he would like the vast majority of exchanges to be positive and proactive.

“I think part of our goal should be that we have the positive interactions far outnumber the negative interactions,” he said, also mentioning he thought there could be improvements to the way traffic flows around the university.

A firm believer in the importance of community feedback, Zeniuk said he welcomes suggestions and comments from faculty, staff and students alike.

“The only way that we can improve what we do is to get feedback, so if there are programs we could assist with or take ownership of and deliver, I’d like to hear about that.”

Lost, found, donated

Ever wonder what happens to all the unclaimed items from the lost and found? It turns out it’s still being returned to students, just in a different form.

Candice Merrill, security supervisor at Mount Royal University, said that after a few years of being in charge of the lost and found she realized she needed a way to get rid of all the clutter that kept piling up.

Security held a sale hawking everything from jewelry to iPods, mostly for prices in the $5 to $10 range, but, instead of donating the proceeds to United Way as previously done, Merrill decided to use the money to benefit MRU students.

“What we do is we take the money and buy gift cards,” Merrill said. “We’ve done Safeway, Wal-Mart, Superstore, and the Mount Royal Bookstore gift cards, and then I give it to the Peer Support Centre, so if they need to use it they have it, and if not it’s available for students to use.”

So far, more than $5,000 has gone to the SA’s Peer Support Centre. Merrill said next year the SA will take over the lost and found, which will give them greater control over how and when they want to sell the stray items.